Friday, November 04, 2005

Oku Onuora - Dread Times

After seeing an interest in dub poetry I decided to do a request. I know I’ve got Okuora’s album “I a Tell - Dub Wise and Otherwise” on cassette but I can’t find it as of yet. I set to pouring through a few reggae books and wasn’t able to come up with a biography so I borrowed what I found from Wikipedia…

“Oku Onuora (formerly Orlando Wong) came to public attention in the mid-1970s, while incarcerated for robbery, when his poetry, with its sharp description of lower-class urban life, came to the attention of Jamaican writers who arranged for the publication of his first collection, Reflections in Red. Well-known literary and cultural personalities, and students at the University of the West Indies, campaigned for his release, which was achieved in 1977.”

Scouring the various artist collections in my possession I came across this track on the 1986 Heartbeat LP, “Heartbeat Reggae.” (God I’m starting to sound like I must be working for these people!) It’s not the track I wanted to share but it’s better than nothing for those who’ve never heard the man.

Wow! This is a monumental moment for me! I've been looking for that album for years and to finally get a chance to enjoy it is like a dream come true! 'Nuff respect Kerppu - if you ever need anything let me know, I'll see what I can do!